To the editor: The effort of the brand-new, polluter-backed board members of the South Coast air district to oust Wallerstein is an alarming sign that an agency that should be protecting the air we breathe intends to roll back decades of air-quality gains.

Though our air has improved, Los Angeles still fails to meet Clean Air Act smog standards critical to protecting our health. Coming on the heels of a developer takeover of the Coastal Commission, this newest polluter-backed coup signals a concerning trend toward reversing environmental progress in our state.

For the sake of our lungs, we must hold air regulators accountable. Angelenos, especially, who have experienced school closures for smog days, must demand that the air district stand up to polluters like the oil industry, who are intent on poisoning our air.